The Federation's mission is to improve
the lives of vulnerable people by mobilizing the power of humanity. It
is the world's largest humanitarian organization and its millions of volunteers
are active in over 181 countries.
In Brief

Given the developing nature of this disaster,
the preliminary appeal will be revised to respond to the actual needs arising
from the continued trajectory of Hurricane Ivan in the Caribbean. The Federation's
approach to this operation and the strategy outlined in this appeal are
intended to be flexible; donors are encouraged to provide timely support,
with minimum earmarking.

Outstanding needs : CHF 1,268,815

Related Emergency or Annual Appeals:
Caribbean Annual Appeal (Appeal 01.52/2004), Pan American Disaster
Response Unit (PADRU) Annual Appeal (Appeal 01.51/2004) Operational Summary:
The Federation, through an agreement with DHL, has chartered a plane to
carry relief supplies from Panama to Grenada, including hygiene kits, plastic
sheeting, tents, jerry cans, bed sheets, generators, lamps, water filters,
water bottles, electric adaptors, tool sets, first aid kits, canned foods,
clothing and phones. Also travelling on the flight are the regional IT
coordinator from the Panama Regio nal Delegation and a water and sanitation
regional intervention team (RIT) member from the Red Cross Society of Panama.
The flight left Panama on Saturday, 11 September and, given logistical
issues, will arrive in Grenada on Sunday, 12 September.

The Federation has released CHF 300,000
from its Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) to help National Societies
in the Caribbean respond to Hurricane Ivan. A Federation Field Assessment
and Coordination Team (FACT) is expected to arrive in Grenada today, 11
September together with a British Red Cross Emergency Response Unit (ERU)
specialized in logistics. A further FACT team is ready for deployment to
Jamaica. The Federation's Sub Regional Office in Port of Spain, Trinidad,
the Panama Regional Delegation and PADRU are ensuring close coordination
with the National Societies on the islands affected by Hurricane Ivan.

The Grenada Red Cross Society headquarters
were badly damaged by Hurricane Ivan. The National Society is currently
working from one of the shelters where the emergency operations centre
has re -located, together with the team from the Federation. The National
Society is working to coordinate with its staff and volunteers in order
to deploy them to the shelters in which the homeless have taken refuge.
Initial assessments point to a lack of water together with distribution
problems as water systems appear to have been more seriously damaged than
previously thought.

In Jamaica, initial needs assessments
are being carried out and Federation staff in the country have submitted
a preliminary request for relief goods. Goods required include hygiene
kits, kitchen kits, plastic sheeting, generators, batteries and flashlights.

The Canadian Red Cross has pledged CAD
495,000 (approximately CHF 483,882) to the Hurricane Ivan operation.

For further information specifically
related to this operation please contact:

All International Federation assistance
seeks to adhere to the Code of Conduct and is committed to the Humanitarian
Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response in delivering assistance
to the most vulnerable. For support to or for further information concerning
Federation programmes or operations in this or other countries, or for
a full description of the national society profile, please access the Federation's
website at http://www.ifrc.org

Background

Hurricane Ivan, the most powerful hurricane
to hit the Caribbean in ten years, has been moving across the region for
several days, damaging homes, buildings and infrastructure, and causing
at least 20 deaths thus far. Ivan was a category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson
scale when it passed by Barbados, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines,
and Trinidad and Tobago on Tuesday, killing one person in Tobago and one
in Barbados. The storm also damaged hundreds of homes and cut off utilities.

Ivan then strengthened into a category
4 hurricane as it hit Grenada on Tuesday evening, bringing sustained winds
of 220 kilometres per hour. Several hundred people from low-lying area
of Saint George's, the Grenadian capital, were evacuated in anticipation
of potential flooding. Ivan also flooded parts of northern Venezue la,
killing at least one person. In addition, there are reports that four youths
in the Dominican Republic were swept away by a giant wave Thursday, even
though the storm was still around 300 kilometres away at the time.

To date, the greatest damage has been
incurred in Grenada, where at least 17 people have died and approximately
90 percent of the country's homes have sustained damage. There are at least
60 people in hospital with injuries. There is currently no water or electricity,
and limited cell phone coverage on the island. Approximately 60,000 people
are homeless and there are currently between 5 and 8 thousand people accommodated
in 47 shelters, 30 of which are official shelters and 17 of which have
been established on an ad-hoc basis.

The hurricane caused structural damage
to nearly every major building in the Grenadian capital of Saint George's,
including the island's emergency operations centre, prime minister's residence,
several schools, the main hospital and a nearby prison. Also among the
damaged buildings was the Grenada Red Cross Society headquarters. Given
the situation of chaos following the hurricane strike, there are major
problems of looting. Local law enforcement authorities, supported by the
Regional Security System, are seeking to bring the internal security situation
under control and there is now a dusk-to-dawn curfew in effect until further
notice.

As of midday Saturday, Hurricane Ivan
was located just off the western tip of Jamaica. The hurricane's path kept
the eye of the storm just south of the island, but the country was still
pounded with winds nearing 250 kilometres per hour, heavy rains and tidal
surges. At least five people were killed as homes were washed away, roofs
were blown off and trees were downed. Jamaica's prime minister declared
a state of emergency and officials urged 500,000 people to evacuate high-risk
areas. Many residents chose to stay because of fears of looting. The slow
moving storm was continuing to batter the country as of late Saturday afternoon.

The current projected path of the hurricane
would carry it over the Cayman Island and western Cuba, and on into the
eastern Gulf of Mexico. Hurricane warnings are in effect in the Cayman
Islands and Cuba. The storm is expected to hit the Cayman Islands on Sunday.

On its current course, Hurricane Ivan
is expected to hit Cuba between Sunday morning and Monday and heavy flooding
is anticipated. The Cuban Red Cross is keeping the population constantly
informed through a television spot entitled "What to do in case of
a Hurricane". Eight provinces: Pinar del Río, Habana, Ciudad Habana,
Matanzas, Villa Clara, Cienfuegos, Sancti Spiritus and the Municipality
of Isla de la Juventud are on hurricane alert. Over 9,000 volunteers are
active in assisting the government with evacuation of the population in
risk areas and providing psychological support, health assistance and distributing
food in shelters to which over 200,000 people have already been evacuated.
Red Cross search and rescue teams have been activated and are ready to
intervene. The Cuban Red Cross is coordinating its activities with the
government, the Ministry of Health, the Civil Defence and other organizations.

In the Cayman Islands, all houses have
been boarded up with wood and zinc sheets. Yesterday, 10 September was
a public holiday for the population in order to prepare for the hurricane.
The population of Little Cayman (100 persons) has been requested to evacuate.
In Brac Cayman, all 1,500 inhabitants are in she lters or have left to
safer islands. In Grand Cayman 18 shelters have been opened, one of which
is managed by the Cayman Islands Red Cross, which have an overall capacity
of around 3,000 people. In every shelter, at least two Red Cross volunteers
are providing assistance. Four 40 foot containers with relief supplies
have been pre-positioned in strategic areas on the island with stocks of
blankets, hygiene kits, water containers, flashlights and shovels. Since
last Tuesday, 7 September, the National Hurric ane Committee, of which
the National Society is a member, has been meeting every day to ensure
coordination.

In Haiti, temporary shelters were set
up in Nippes and in the North West Department ten houses were damaged.
In the South Department, 830 people were evacuated as a result of flooding
from rivers in spate and temporary shelters set up for 1,600 persons in
five communes. The Haitian National Red Cross Society distributed hygiene
kits to those evacuated.

Operational developments

In Grenada, the Emergency Operations
Centre temporarily suspended all shipments of relief supplies into the
country, following a recommendation from the Regional Security System and
the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (CDERA). The suspension
was implemented to allow for the strengthening of security to ensure that
goods and equipment could arrive safely in the country. This suspension
has now been lifted again, allowing for the free movement of goods into
the country. The airport is back in operation now and is expected to be
open to limited commercial traffic today. Transportation is also a major
issue; there are not enough trucks to take relief goods out of the airport
and there is also a lack of storage space for these goods at the airport.
Only daylight operations are possible.

The Federation team in Grenada has reported
that there is minor damage to the Grenada General Hospital. The hospital
is low on water. The 95 geriatric, psychiatric patients from the hospital
at the Richmond Home are in a life threatening situation and need water
and food. There are 15 persons who are currently vomiting and suffering
from diarrhoea. The Princess Alice Hospital in Grenville was evacuated.
The critical needs now are for antibiotics, anti diarrhoeal medication
and relief personnel.

Water is also a serious issue in Grenada.
There are currently four water trucks involved in relief distributions,
three of which have been supplied by the National Water and Sewerage Authority
(NAWASA), and one which has been supplied by St. George's University. Unfortunately,
this is not enough to address the needs of the affected population. There
are additional water trucks located in the country, but they are too large
to travel on Grenada's rural roads. The only water service available at
this time is a small, low-level supply that is being used to distribute
water to hotels and the airport. St. George's University and the Grenada
General Hospital are also being supplied with water. The two major water
supplies on the island suffered serious damage and it is unclear how long
repairs will take. OXFAM will take the lead role in addressing water and
sanitation issues in relief efforts on the island. The Federation will
support OXFAM through an assessment by water and sanitation personnel and
through complementary activities.

In Jamaica, the Jamaica Red Cross (JRC)
had estimated that tens of thousands of people would be threatened by Hurricane
Ivan. Voluntary evacuations were carried out in all high risk areas. In
coordination with the government's Office of Disaster Preparedness and
Emergency Management (ODPEM), the JRC is responsible for managing all 1,000
community shelters opened across the island. In addition, all 14 Red Cross
branches, 12,000 volunteers and Red Cross Community Disaster Response Teams
(CDRT) have been placed on alert. The JRC also purchased food locally (rice,
cooking oil, powdered milk, canned sardines and dried soup mix) and pre-deployed
it in the north of the country prior to the storm.

The hurricane began impacting Jamaica
yesterday morning, 10 September, and is still doing so. However, the island
was spared the full impact of the storm as the eye passed along the south-west
coast of the island. The system is slowly moving away from the island and
strong winds are likely to continue for several hours. There are reports
that approximately 11,836 persons weathered the storm in Jamaica in 285
shelters. Power and water supply were shut down for safety; however, the
telephone service is still functioning. Reports so far indicate that 88
communities have been affected, mostly in Kingston and St. Andrew. 25 main
roads are inaccessible given fallen trees, flooding or landslides. The
Federation has a team composed of a disaster management expert from the
Secretariat and an information and reporting delegate in Jamaica.

In Cuba, the Federation has deployed
a water and sanitation delegate and a logistician from PADRU, together
with a telecommunications expert from Ericsson Response. The regional information
delegate from the Lima Regional Delegation is currently travelling to Cuba.